North Star with Ellin Bessner

In November, as Omicron emerged as the new dominant strain of COVID-19, York Region in Ontario appointed Dr. Barry Pakes as their new medical officer of health. The region covers nine urban centres and more than a million people, including Canada's densest Jewish community, in Thornhill. So the fact that Pakes is an Orthodox Jew who studied, in part, at a yeshiva, gives him a unique advantage to liaise with local Jewish institutions and organizations when discussing how to fight the pandemic. While Hanukkah gatherings lead to outbreaks across the community, especially in schools that had to be closed, there are worries about large families that travelled over the holidays as skyrocketing statistics are defining Omicron's winter surge. Pakes joins today to explain how the community can combat the virus, what to expect from the Omicron variant and what the new year looks like from a public health perspective. What we talked about: Find a vaccination clinic in York Region at york.ca Read "COVID cases have kept rising at Jewish schools in York Region during November 2021" at thecjn.ca Listen to Barry Pakes discuss the pandemic in April 2021 on Bonjour Chai Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network; find more great Jewish podcasts at thecjn.ca.

Quebec’s Bill 21, which bars public employees such as teachers and police officers from wearing religious symbols on the job, has been in place for more than two years already. But the recent reassignment of Fatemeh Anvari, the third-grade public school teacher who was removed from her post for wearing a hijab, escalated the issue to an entirely different level. Until now, political leaders have equivocated on the issue for fear of angering Quebeckers ahead of the federal election. After Anvari's reassignment, that attitude has changed. Politicians from the prime minister to community and political leaders have, more loudly, spoken out against it for discriminating against Muslims, Sikhs and other minority groups—including religious Jews. But the head of the Communauté sépharade unifiée du Québec—the province's association of Sephardic Jews—is worried about the impact all this newfound opposition from outsiders will have on Francophones, who largely support the bill. Jacques Saada, a former politician and cabinet minister in Paul Martin's government, joins to discuss why he personally opposes the bill, but believes the debate may fan the flames of separatism in Quebec. What we talked about: Learn about CSUQ at csuq.org Watch the protests in support of Fatemeh Anvari on YouTube Read "Inside the uphill battle faced by opponents to Quebec’s Bill 21" on thecjn.ca Read CIJA's position at cija.ca Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network; find more great Jewish podcasts at thecjn.ca.

The term "lone soldier" refers to recruits in the Israel Defense Forces who have little or no family support systems in the Jewish state. Israel estimates there 6,000 lone soldiers currently active. While it's impossible to say how many of those are Canadian, it's relatively common for Canadian high school graduates to head to the Holy Land for two years of military service, despite the known issues of occasional homesickness, language barriers, depression and even suicide. Elsewhere, some Canadian groups have argued that it's illegal for a foreign country to recruit soldiers on Canadian soil. But none of that is preventing young Canadian Jews from signing up to defend the Jewish homeland. Today, we’ll hear from two veterans of the lone soldier program: Zach Brown, now working at an Israeli startup in Tel Aviv, and Rebecca Weiss, who finished her army duty a year ago, and is now studying at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. What we talked about: Read the Nefesh B'Nefesh brochure for parents of lone soldiers at nbn.org.il Read "How friendships and authentic Israel experiences shaped my Aliyah story" at thecjn.ca Read "Ambassador welcomes Canadian IDF Lone Soldiers" at thecjn.ca Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network; find more great Jewish podcasts at thecjn.ca.

In spring 2020, COVID-19 ripped though the Donald Berman Maimonides Geriatric Centre in Montreal. The facility was understaffed and underprepared to begin with, and while it went into strict lockdown and the army was called in, 67 of its residents have since died from the pandemic. The arrival of the vaccine, one year ago this month, was seen as a beacon of hope. This week, the centre hosted a party to celebrate that anniversary. Cards with the phrase "Celebrating our shot at a future without COVID-19" were on display. They brought out cookies and ballons, and a rabbi recited a memorial prayer for the dead. Camera crews were invited in to see how life at Maimonides is returning to normal as safely as possible. But it's not clear they're prepared for the dangers Omicron could bring. Today, we're joined by Jennifer Clarke of Quebec's public health department and long-time patient advocate Beverly Spanier to discuss the realities facing long-term care homes coming into 2022. What we talked about: Listen to the previous CJN Daily episode, "Counting the Jewish victims of COVID-19", at thecjn.ca Learn about the concert for flood relief at floodrelief.ca Read Jerry Kapelus's poetic funeral notice at steelesmemorialchapel.com Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network; find more great Jewish podcasts at thecjn.ca.

Amazing Women of the Middle East is an 112-page illustrated children's book. It profiles 25 famous women, including historical figures such as Cleopatra and Nefertiti, and also modern-day heroines like human rights lawyer Amal Clooney. What it doesn't include, however, is the State of Israel. The book's colourful map of the Middle East removed any mention of the Jewish homeland, instead labelling the entire country as Palestine. The author is a Lebanese-born writer and translator who lives in England, and the is publisher is a Palestinian activist whose parents had a home in Jerusalem until 1948. Neither replied to The CJN's requests for comment by our podcast deadline. After one Jewish family noticed the omission, which sparked outrage across social media, Canada's largest bookseller, Indigo, pulled the book from its shelves. Daniel Koren, the person who spotted the book and contacted Indigo directly, joins to discuss his impression and feelings about the issue. What we talked about: Read Indigo's content policy at help.indigo.ca Watch the HMCS Winnipeg return at facebook.com/RoyalCanadianNavy Read "Indigo pulls pro-Hitler and Holocaust-denial books from virtual shelf" at thecjn.ca Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network; find more great Jewish podcasts at thecjn.ca.

It's been a week since the Toronto District School Board held a meeting to vote on whether to censure Alexandra Lulka. The Jewish trustee spoke out about some teaching materials which she felt were antisemitic, and the board subsequently came down on her for failing to support other parts of those materials. The board voted not to censure her, but there are still lingering questions about whether the experience of Jewish students, parents and trustees is understood at Canada's largest school board. We're joined by two people who have been working behind the scenes with the TDSB to champion the Jewish side of the story and talk about next steps: Noah Shack, spokesperson for the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, and Michael Anthony, a Jewish teacher who's worked in the TDSB for 16 years. What we talked about: Read about the TDSB's Student Equity Collective at tdsb.on.ca/About-Us/Equity Read Alexandra Lulka's response to the attempted censure on Twitter Watch the Toronto Police's video of the suspect in the Sherman murders on YouTube Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network; find more great Jewish podcasts at thecjn.ca.

This year, an unlikely Hanukkah party was held at the Canada Pavillion of Expo 2020 in Dubai. The emcee for the candlelighting and kosher dinner was Canada's ambassador to the United Arab Emirates, Marcy Grossman, a Montrealer who's spent the last three years in the Gulf state. Grossman has found herself at the centre of Jewish life in the Arab country, embedding herself within a community of about 3,500 Jews—some of whom have literally come out of hiding, as the UAE fleshes out its new formal relationship with Israel, following the signing of the Abraham Accords. Before she retires from her post in 2022, Grossman joins to discuss life in Dubai and how she feels feels more comfortable as a Jewish woman in the UAE than in many other parts of the world. What we talked about: Read Marcy Grossman's bio at international.gc.ca Read her article, "Canada wishes the UAE well on its 50th anniversary", at thenationalnews.com Watch videos from the candlelighting ceremony on Instagram from @avivachernick and @marcygrossman Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network; find more great Jewish podcasts at thecjn.ca.

Former Toronto mayor Mel Lastman died on Saturday at the age of 88. Lastman made his fortune as a businessman before becoming mayor of North York for 25 years; after that, he was elected the first mayor of the amalgamated City of Toronto. And while the colourful politician made headlines for some politically incorrect remarks while in office—and may have fathered two sons out of wedlock—Lastman's biggest legacy includes his staunch promotion of the city and his dedication to building up the suburban parts of the city. Three colleagues and friends join to remember the former mayor. Journalist Sue-Ann Levy covered City Hall during Lastman's tenure; now-retired city councillor Norman Gardner was a close ally through their careers; and Rabbi Shmuel Spero is the rabbi at the Anshei Minsk synagogue in Kensington Market, where Lastman had his bar mitzvah. What we talked about: Find Mel Lastman's funeral detals at benjaminsparkmemorialchapel.ca Read about the history of Lastman's Bad Boy, his furniture chain, at badboy.ca Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network; find more great Jewish podcasts at thecjn.ca.

On Wednesday evening, the Toronto District School Board held a lengthy meeting to take a vote over whether to censure trustee Alexandra Lulka. Lulka—who is Jewish—took to Twitter to voice her concerns over some teaching material being passed around by a pro-Palestinian teacher and activist. The materials linked to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, listed as a terrorist organization by the Canadian government, and legitimized suicide bombings. But while the TDSB staffer behind the inflammatory materials, Javier Dávila, was briefly suspended, Lulka's censure was more surprising—and caused widespread outrage across Toronto's Jewish community and provincial politicians. The convoluted controversy came to a head at Wednesday's board meeting, where Lulka won the vote, other trustees criticized the debacle and one member asked aloud if the TDSB could get away with doing nothing at all. What we talked about: Read the investigation report about Lulka here Read "Toronto school board trustee Alexandra Lulka criticized for calling out antisemitic teaching resources" at thecjn.ca Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network; find more great Jewish podcasts at thecjn.ca.

Ruth Wisse is the author of the new book, Free as a Jew: A Personal Memoir of National Self-Liberation. Its Canadian debut coincided with Jewish Book Month, hosted by the Jewish Public Library in Montreal. But the timing wasn't a coincidence. Wisse, 85, has spent decades as a professor of Yiddish at Harvard, and pioneered the Jewish Studies graduate program at McGill. These days, her unabashed opinions, often conservative, target left-leaning Jews and what she believes is an over-emphasis on mourning the Holocaust, rather than celebrating Israel. Wisse joins the show to discuss these topics and more in an expansive interview. What we talked about: Watch Wisse's book launch on YouTube Find her book on simonandschuster.com Read "McGill celebrates 50 years of Jewish studies" at thecjn.ca Credits The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network; find more great Jewish podcasts at thecjn.ca.